Stolen eagle returned to its nest

Ed Annon’s handcrafted eagle statues sit under the American flag on the front lawn of his home on Unaweep Avenue. The statues are a patriotic symbol for all veterans and something that Annon proudly displays on his lawn.

Annon could not comprehend why his eagle was stolen not once, but twice from his yard in the past three years. The second occurrence happened three weeks ago.

But Annon’s missing eagle statue returned home June 27.

Annon said the couple who returned the statue to his home wished to remain anonymous but told him the statue was recovered somewhere on Main Street in downtown Grand Junction. No other details were given.

Though Annon was confused why the statue had been left downtown, he was thankful it returned home.
“I didn’t think I was going to get it back this time. I thought it was gone for good,” Annon said.

With the help of The Daily Sentinel, Annon has found his eagle statue twice. In September 2010, he submitted a comment to the “You Said It” column, which is published on Sundays. The comment was published in Sept. 19 “You Said It” in The Daily Sentinel. The Mesa County Sheriff’s Department later reunited Annon with his beloved statue.

This time, Annon similarly submitted a comment, which was noticed by the Sentinel staff. An article was published about his missing eagle in the June 25 paper.

The couple believed the statue they had found on Main Street was Annon’s because of the article. With the help of a Sentinel reporter, the couple returned the statue back to Annon.

Annon said he is grateful for the Sentinel’s help in locating and returning his statue, twice.

Depsite the thefts, Annon said he would continue to display the eagle, but would take more precaution in making the statue safe and secure. He mentioned adding more cement to the statue’s post and possibly adding a security camera.

“I want to figure something out that won’t allow for anyone to do that again,” Annon said.